As is well known, high performance engines often use water pumps as part of their engine cooling system. Water pumps typically provide circulation of the engine coolant through the cooling system, which helps prevent the engine from overheating. Water pumps are typically driven by the engine through a drive belt. Alternatively, some engines employ a timing belt to drive an associated water pump. Water pumps typically consist of a housing with an impeller shaft rotating on an internal bearing. With this configuration, a pulley is mounted on one end of the impeller shaft and an impeller is mounted on the other end of the shaft.
As is also known, a failure that can occur with these types of water pump systems is that the impeller can slide out of position and contact another structure, such as the pump housing or the engine block. This can happen as the impeller components expand and contract due to temperature changes. This contact by the impeller with either the pump housing or the engine block can cause damage to either of those structures as well as to the engine. For example, if an impeller moves out of position and contacts the pump housing, it can cause the pump to slow down due to the restricted movement, which puts stress on the pump. This stress increases the load on the timing belt which likely causes it to wear prematurely until it eventually fails unless the stress is relieved. The failure of the timing belt, which controls the reciprocation of engine valves, can cause the valves to become damaged or destroyed. The repair for this condition requires significant engine repair or an engine rebuild, which is extremely expensive.
It would thus be desirable to provide a water pump system that addressed these issues and provides improved performance.